Jenkins’ sexual assault of a child court case to be continued

Tuesday

Aug 5, 2014 at 10:48 AM

State petitions to proceed under Sexually Dangerous Persons Act

By Jackie SmithEditor

The case of a Macomb man accused of sexually assaulting a small child more than a year ago was continued on Monday until another hearing in McDonough County court this fall, as the state moves to classify him a sexually dangerous person.

Benjamin Jenkins, who was arrested last summer for the "inappropriate touching" of a then-5-year-old girl, is facing three counts of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child. Early on Jenkins, age 65 at the time, had plead not guilty to the charges, though law enforcement testified he admitted the act upon his arrest.

According to court documents filed Monday, the state seeks to continue the case under the Sexually Dangerous Persons Act. During his initial police interview, documents state, Jenkins indicated he "lost control" and knew what he did was wrong, but explained "he could not say no."

"The defendant … appears to the State to be suffering from a mental disorder that affects his emotional or volitional capacity, predisposes him to engage in the commission of sex offenses and results in serious difficulty controlling his sexual behaviors," documents state. "… It appears that said mental disorder has existed for more than a year prior to the filing of this petition."

The petition filed Monday additionally lays claim that it's "substantially probable" the defendant will engage in sex offenses in the future if not confined and calls for two qualified psychiatrists to personally examine him to determine whether he is a sexually dangerous person.

Jenkins' date in court is set for 9:30 a.m. Oct. 7.

Predatory criminal sexual assault of a child is a Class X felony punishable by between six and 60 years in prison.

Reach Jackie Smith via email at jsmith@McDonoughVoice.com, or follow her on Twitter @Jackie20Smith.

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